Way back in middle school, the Sweet Valley Twins and all the subsequent series involving Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield were my brain candy. Simple, easy, fluff reads when you just need to escape. What better escape can there be than sunny California, accompanied by two amazingly popular and gorgeous twin sisters?

So when I found out that Francine Pascal was writing a new book, a book about the now grown up sisters, I had to read it. It wasn't quite the day of release, but only a few days later. I needed an easy read, something to take my mind off the hustle of the past week. It was exactly what I expected it to be. A light, easy fluffy read; definitely chick lit material. It's not what I remembered though. Of course, my taste in reading material when I was eleven is a far cry from the sort of book I would pick up now. At least most of the time.

It's hard to say much about the story without some major spoilers, so I will leave it with just a basic intro. Elizabeth has been a resident of New York for eight months, leaving Sweet Valley on the heals of a tragic betrayal by her best friend, and sister, Jessica.

It was fun to read; fun to relive some of my fond childhood memories. But it wasn't great. There were internal dialogue scenes that I more often than not didn't care for. I also don't remember so much of their speech being punctuated by so and like. It felt like Pascal was trying too hard to incorporate that ubiquitous Valley Girl speech that is so often lampooned. At 27, it felt very out of character for the girls now grown into women, especially the serious Elizabeth. I did enjoy it, but no one will ever mistake it for high literature, and it's doubtful it will ever make it onto someone's list of favorite novels. If what you're looking for is a fun read or a walk down memory lane, then this book is exactly that, but nothing more.